Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in joint US-Israeli strikes on Saturday. Many fear that his death would create a leadership vacuum in the Islamic Republic, given that he has no known successor. However, the authorities in the country have already started to act. Here’s what we can expect in Iran now:
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Three key scenarios for the future of the Iranian regime:
AND. Ali Khamenei would name four before his death
B. During the transition period, there will be a four-man council to run the country until a new leader is elected, Al Jazeera reported.
C. In addition to the clerical contenders, recent US intelligence assessments reportedly pointed to another scenario: The leadership could shift to hardliners within Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Sunday Guardian reported. This would mark a shift from clerical succession to military-influenced control.
Who is running the Iranian regime now? The process of appointing a new leader
1. A council is formed to assume leadership until a new supreme leader is appointed.
Iran’s official news agency IRNA said a leadership council consisting of the president, the head of the judiciary and a lawyer from the Guardian Council would temporarily take over the role of supreme leader.
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“Pending the introduction of the Leader, all the duties of the Leader will be temporarily taken over by a council composed of the President, the Chief Justice and one of the Guardian Council’s lawyers selected by the Expediency Discernment Council,” IRNA said, citing “the constitutional provision on the absence of the Leader.”
Ali Larijani, secretary of the National Security Council, said the formation of the Interim Leadership Council would take place on Sunday. He reportedly confirmed that the groundwork was laid during Saturday’s meeting and the council should be formed now.
2. The Assembly of Experts selects a new supreme leader.
According to Al Jazeera, 88 members of the Assembly of Experts, a clerical body, are expected to meet to discuss who will be the next leader.
These senior clerics vet candidates, have an internal vote and decide who takes over, the Sunday Guardian reported.
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Candidates for the Assembly of Experts are pre-approved by the powerful Guardian Council, whose members are chosen with Khamenei’s influence, the report added.
Who are the possible candidates?
During the 12-day war with Israel in June 2025, while Khamenei was in hiding, he named three candidates to be named as his successors, according to a New York Times report. They were:
1. Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i, Head of the Judiciary.
2. Ali Asghar Hejazi, Ayatollah Khamenei’s Chief of Staff.
3. Hassan Khomeini, grandson of Ayatollah Khomeini.
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Here are the key figures often mentioned as possible successors to Khamenei, as reported by the Sunday Guardian:
1. Hojjat‐ol‐Eslam Mohsen Qomi: Close advisor to Khamenei.
2. Ayatollah Alireza Arafi: Senior cleric with leadership roles in both the Assembly of Experts and the Guardian Council.
3. Ayatollah Mohsen Araki: Member of the Assembly of Experts.
4. Ayatollah Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejei: head of Iran’s judiciary and former intelligence official.
5. Ayatollah Hashem Hosseini Bushehri: leader of Friday prayers in Qom and member of the Assembly of Experts.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader since 1989 and a sworn enemy of the West, was killed in the opening salvo of a massive US-Israeli assault that stretched into a second day on March 1 as both powers sought to topple the Islamic republic.
